By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
Coming back to Belgrade as heroes, the Serbian national team was celebrated by thousands of countrymen, who also had the opportunity to watch Borisa Simanic on stage after he lost one kidney following contact with South Sudan’s Nuni Omot during the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
“I’m doing great, really! At first, it was really awkward, but day by day it’s getting better. I’ve started walking and eating, so I hope for a speedy recovery”, he first said in an interview with Radio Belgrade. “Since I had two surgeries, I practically didn’t know about myself for five days. I didn’t even have a phone”, he added.
He went on to talk about the message he sent to his teammates prior to the Quarter-Finals against Lithuania. “When I managed to physically reach my mobile phone on the first occasion, I sent them a message and that really lifted their morale a lot. Their victories meant a lot to me, so in that way, we complemented each other. I followed them through the mobile application”, the 25-year-old power forward also commented.
Finally, he provided an update about his future on the court. “For now, I don’t know much”, Borisa Simanic first said. “Of course, it is possible that I will play again. I only know that I must not do anything for three months. After that, my kidney needs to heal. I am expected to undergo analyses under physical effort and after that, we will know everything”, Casademont Zaragoza’s player commented.
Before and after every big game played by Serbia, all the protagonists featured on the national team had emotional words for their teammates, including Nikola Milutinov and Marko Guduric. After the win in the Semifinal against Canada, the Fenerbahce guard said that “This is bigger than basketball”.
PHOTO CREDIT: Serbian Basketball Federation